Just like Apple, Google releases a new flagship phone every year and up until this year, they were known as Nexus phones. No longer though, it is widely rumored that Google will name their new flagship the Pixel phone. HTC is the actual hardware maker of both the small and larger Pixel phone and the rumored price tag is starting at $649. Traditionally Google’s flagship phones were affordably priced so a starting price tag of $649 for the Pixel phone is a bit of a shocker to some loyal Nexus users.

Venture Beat has also obtained a pretty clear image of what the Pixel phone will look like and it’s pretty much living up to the other leaks we’ve seen thus far. The $649 starting price tag is for the smaller version which means the larger version will likely be priced closer to Apple’s flagship iPhones. There has been talk that Google is launching these phones in order to compete with Apple more directly.

There has even been rumor that Google could buy HTC and transform it into their own hardware making arm for everything Pixel. Much of the speculation does make sense, whether it’s true or not is another matter. Google does seem to want to shed the Nexus development platform in favor of a more polished and consumer friendly Pixel platform. They’ve even taken out major ad space for the October launch of their new phones, something not usually on the Google game plan. As for HTC, a purchase of the hardware company could be a perfect fit for Google and HTC as the hardware maker has been struggling lately and that could mean a reasonable purchase price for Google. All speculation of course. For now, we’ll have to enjoy the new Pixel phone image and wait for October 4th.

What do you think of the speculative Google Pixel plan? Let us know in the comments below or on Twitter, Facebook and Google+.

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